BBC pioneering "citizen tv" with Your News

BBC News 24’s launch of Your News, a tv news program to be made up of user-generated content, marks another step in the convergence of citizen and established media. The pilot of the show was aired Saturday, and was comprised of material sent to the BBC by its viewers, readers etc, and also a top 10 list of the most talked about news on BBC News’ site.

“We are a BBC news program, we just don’t look like all the others. And the stories and images you will see over the next 20 minutes or so, you won’t see anywhere else..” says Richard Bilton in the pilot.

“It is a short pilot run at first to see how it goes, but the first edition was watched by more than 300 000 people”, writes Kevin Bakhurst, controller of BBC News 24.

Viewers are encouraged to get in touch with Your News and suggest what they should look at more closely. Not all material is actually made by the viewers, but they have the initiative.
So the story initiatives come from the citizens, but the tv reporters then follow up and try to answer questions posed by the viewers.
You News also has a mobile studio they travel around with, where people can record themself stating what they’d like to see on tv.